“For we are God's handiwork, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do.” Ephesians 2:10 (NIV)

There were exactly 10 girls trying out for 10 spots on the varsity cheerleading team. My bedroom walls were covered with cheerleading posters, my hours were filled with jumps and stunts, and my hands were always gripping pompoms. Though the varsity tryouts seemed a formality, I cheered with all my might.

I couldn’t wait to wear my new orange and black varsity cheerleading uniform. When I was cheering, I felt fully alive!

But after tryouts, I received a call: I didn’t make the team. To them, I wasn’t good enough. I didn’t have what it would take, they said. The coaches decided they’d just rather go with nine cheerleaders that season.

Instead of putting on a cheerleading uniform for a season, I put on a lie that became the megaphone of my life: I’m not enough. God doesn’t want to use a not-good-enough girl like me.

Maybe you had a big dream when you were a little girl, too. Something that made you feel fully alive, like it was what you were created to do!

Or maybe you picked up the lie that God doesn’t want to use you because of …

• Your past.
• Your poor choices.
• Your weight or your age.
• Someone who told you too, that you aren’t enough.

In the New Testament, there was a woman who didn't believe she was enough. The Bible calls her the Samaritan woman. But she wasn’t just any woman; she was a woman who made a lot of bad life choices. Choices that caused people to whisper, look down at her and stay away from her.

But when Jesus saw the Samaritan woman, He didn't keep His distance. He never does.

Even though He knew her whole story — including the mistakes and bad choices — He leaned in and loved her. He forgave her and gave her a brand-new life. Jesus changed her, and it was enough to change an entire community!

When a woman believes she is who God says she is, everything changes. In Jesus, she is enough and has enough to do what she was created to do.

The Samaritan woman’s mess became a life-changing message. John 4:39 says, “Many of the Samaritans from that town believed in him [Jesus] because of the woman's testimony, ‘He told me everything I ever did’” (NIV).

Friend, no one is too far gone. The stresses and messes you find yourself in today? That’s the very place Jesus desires to meet you so you can do what you’ve been created to do.

Jesus did it for the Samaritan woman. He did it for me. After high school, my mess became a drug and alcohol addiction that nearly took my life. But His message through me today is that in Christ, we are loved, period. Changed by His love, I’m now God’s cheerleader, created to encourage girls and women to know God’s Truth so they can live full and walk free.

Friend, Jesus will do the same for you. When you hear the lie that you’re not enough, you have a choice. You can listen to the lie, or you can tell it, “Enough! The Truth is, I am enough and have been created on purpose, for a purpose. It’s time for me to go change the world!”

Dear God, thank You that in Jesus, I am equipped, enough and loved. Period. Thank You for creating me with purpose and potential. Please use me to change the world. In Jesus’ Name, Amen.

TRUTH FOR TODAY

John 8:32, “Then you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free.” (NIV)

RELATED RESOURCES

Make sure the girls in your life always know they are enough and loved, period. SHINE brightly and Sparkle magazines not only help girls see their true value and worth in Christ, but they’re a lot of fun, too! Check them out here.

Get your free “I am enough” lock screen wallpaper available for download on the GEMS website, here.

CONNECT

GEMS is the go-to ministry for girls’ spiritual growth. For over 60 years, GEMS has been guiding girls’ faith development through mentoring relationships and Truth-filled resources. Learn more about GEMS, here.

Head to GEMS Instagram account, where you can enter to WIN a free one-year subscription to SHINE brightly, for girls ages 9-14, or Sparkle magazine, for girls ages 6-8 from GEMS. {We’ll randomly select 5 winners and notify each one by August 25, 2020.}

REFLECT AND RESPOND

Is there a lie you’ve been believing for far too long? Armed with the Truth about who God says you are, what step will you take today to walk in that Truth? We’d love to hear from you! Share your thoughts in the comments.

© 2020 by Cindy Bultema. All rights reserved.

Proverbs 31 Ministries thanks GEMS Girls’ Clubs for their sponsorship of today’s devotion.

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